A Matter Of Time
by Ares
Summary: ::COMPLETED:: There are an infinite number of realities. What happens when seven of them collide?
1. 1: TimeWarp 2: Awakening 3: Meet The A...

TIMELINE: PAIX WORLD

A Matter Of Time

Chapter 1: Timewarp

****

Timeline: Paix World

Tamiran closed her eyes and felt her ki level grow. She positioned her outstretched hands and yelled, "KA-ME-HA-ME-HAAAAA!!"

The blast exploded in the ocean. A huge wall of water came rushing toward the island. Tamiran cringed as it flooded over the small house.

Here we go again. 5…4…3…2… 

"TAMIRAN!!"

Tam turned to see a soaked, furious Master Roshi. She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Master Roshi. I'll be more careful next time. But my Kamehamehas keep creating tsunamis whenever I practice."

Krillin appeared out of nowhere. "Hi Tam! Fancy seeing you here!"

"I live here, Krillin," she reminded the bald man, smiling to herself. It was kind of cute the way he had such an obvious crush on her.

Master Roshi watched as Tam and Krillin talked, his gaze wandering over Tam. She was certainly a pretty girl; she was tall and slender but strong. Her long spiky black hair waved slightly in the breeze, almost reaching her butt.

And what a fine butt it is, Master Roshi mused. Clad in the tight black pants, white leotard and black boots she wore for sparring, Tam was definitely appealing… and definitely oblivious to the fact.

Not like her two best friends and comrades-in-arms, Chi-chi and Bulma. The former knew she was attractive and didn't flaunt it, the latter flirted with every guy she could get her hands on.

Speak of the devil. Chi-chi and Bulma strolled out of the waterlogged house, deep in conversation. They plopped down onto the sand, still talking and ignoring everyone else around them.

Tam looked up and smiled. "The guys are coming," she said. Sure enough, a few minutes later Piccolo, Tien, Chiaotzu and Yamcha landed on the grass.

Bulma squealed, jumped up and hugged Yamcha fiercely. Those two had an on-again, off-again relationship. Lately it was very definitely on-again.

Tam dusted off her hands and grinned. "Hey guys. How's the training?" she asked. Piccolo smiled — a rare occurrence for Piccolo — and replied, "fine. And judging by the dampness yours is better than ever."

Suddenly, a sneering voice interrupted them. "Aw, isn't this sweet. Can I kill them?"

Standing ankle-deep in the water were two dark-eyes guys. Their black hair was spiky like Tam's, only theirs stood up straight on their heads. They wore blue-and-white armour with blue boots and gloves. One was big and brawny, the other smaller but muscular.

The big guy smiled nastily. "So we meet again finally… you've grown into quite a fine young woman."

"Hey!" Krillin yelled. "Don't talk about her that way!"

Tam looked at them, a blank expression on her face. "Huh?"

"We recognise you, Princess Tamerisk," he said. "Party's over. I think it's about time you came home, don't you? I mean, fun is fun, but six years away from home?"

Tam frowned. "I don't think I understand. My name is Tamiran and THIS is my home."

The smaller guy laughed. "Enough joking around, Princess. Come home. Hey, we'll even let you destroy this pitiful planet."

"Why would I want to do that?" Tam asked. The big guy looked shocked. "Because you're a Saiyan like us! Princess, what's gotten into you?"

"Princess, did you ever hit your head?" the smaller guy asked. Tam nodded. "Yeah. I don't remember it, but I still have the scar. I lost all my childhood memories."

"She's not herself, Kakarott. She doesn't remember," the smaller guy said. He turned to Tam. "Come on. Kill a few of these… creatures… and you'll feel much better."

"I'm not killing my friends," Tam cried, sickened. Kakarott brightened. "Hey, maybe WE can kill them, Vegeta."

"You'll have to go through me first," Tam snarled. "KA-ME-HA-ME-HAAA!!"

Kakarott and Vegeta dodged the blast and retaliated. Soon all three warriors were flashing through the air in a flurry of angry cries and ki blasts.

Suddenly, three blasts connected. They detonated with a huge silver flash. The three combatants and the onlookers all saw stars and strange flashes of memory. Memories that never happened.

Kakarott saw himself and… a child?! He was walking through a flower-laden field with a child and a woman, a stupid lovestruck expression on his face. Impossible!

Piccolo saw himself, striking down everyone around him. People he knew and others he'd never seen. Fighting alongside a dark-haired youth with cold blue eyes. Killing Yamcha, one of his greatest friends. The Namek sought out Yamcha with onyx eyes, silently begging for the vision to be false. But he could see nothing but memories that weren't his.

In fact, the only person who saw nothing but blackness was Tamiran.

****

Timeline: Mauvais World

Chi-chi stroked Trunks' hair off his forehead and sat back on her heels, watching the little boy sleep. She shot a worried glance at Krillin. "He looks so peaceful," she murmured. "I don't know if he even realises what's going on aboveground."

There was the sound of footsteps on rocks. Chi-chi and Krillin could tell it was Gohan by the slow, tired sound of the steps. King Piccolo and Android 17 always walked as if they had somewhere to go.

Sure enough, a tall teenager with spiky black hair and a tired expression walked into the room.

"Oh, Gohan!" Chi-chi cried, wrapping him in a tight hug. Gohan hugged her back. "It's okay, Mom, I'm okay," he assured her. Trunks woke at the sound of his voice and ran over, grabbing Gohan's legs and hugging them. Gohan grinned. "Hey there little guy. Miss me?"

He sat down on a pile of rubble and scooped the 5-year-old into his lap. Trunks became mesmerised with the medallion Gohan wore around his neck, playing with it as if it was the best toy invented. Gohan leaned his head against the wall and sighed.

"What's up, Gohan?" Krillin asked. Gohan replied, "I found more victims today. A family… three little children. How can those monsters kill children?"

He sighed. "Ever since Father and Vegeta were killed, there's been more death. First it was close to home… now it's just whoever gets in the way."

They all silently looked at the seven furrows in the uneven dirt floor where they had buried their friends, one by one. Vegeta, Goku, Chiaotzu, Tien, Yamcha, Bulma, Goten. And now two warriors, a woman and a little boy were all that was left of the once-proud Z fighters.

A blast suddenly incinerated the roof of their ramshackle shelter. Gohan thrust Trunks at Chi-chi and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Krillin as a green Namek and a dark-haired youth dropped into the shelter.

King Piccolo and Android 17.

17 laughed. "So, we've found the hiding place of Earth's last hope. Huddled like little mice."

Without warning, he lunged forward, engaging Gohan in combat. Leaving Krillin to face King Piccolo.

Chi-chi trembled and huddled against the wall, hugging Trunks to her chest. King Piccolo turned his evil gaze on her.

And then the world exploded in a silver flash. The six in the shelter saw stars and flashes of impossible memory.

17 saw himself fighting what looked like a slightly younger King Piccolo. But King Piccolo was his ally… how was this possible?

Krillin saw himself talking to a pretty girl with spiky Saiyan hair who he'd never seen before, as well as all his dead friends. But it was no memory he knew; it was on Master Roshi's island. But King Piccolo had destroyed the island long ago…

Chi-chi saw herself, but younger, talking to a younger Bulma. Saw younger-Bulma leap up and hug Yamcha, despite the fact that Yamcha and Bulma had barely been speaking, not once Vegeta had shown up.

And then none of them saw anything for a long time.

****

Timeline: Mi-Chemin World

Vegeta sighed as he watched Goku's son play in the gentle waves. One could almost believe everything was as it should be. If one was willing to overlook several things.

One, Krillin wasn't there. Hadn't been there since the evil Piccolo killed him. Two, both Vegeta's son and Goku's son were without mothers.

Trunks was used to living without a mother. Bulma had been dead for almost eighteen years now, killed barely two months after Trunks was born. But Chi-chi's death was much more recent. Goku's wife had been killed five days ago. Gohan hadn't caught on that anything was wrong and Vegeta was glad. No child should have to lose his mother, least of all a 5-year-old.

A shadow made him look up. Android 17 stood behind him, the one expression Vegeta had never thought he'd see on his face — sorrow.

"I am truly sorry for Chi-chi's death," the android said softly. Vegeta nodded. He still hadn't come to terms with the fact that 17 was on their side, thanks to some nifty reprogramming on the part of Dr. Briefs.

There was a tug on Vegeta's sleeve and he looked down into Gohan's innocent eyes. "Mr. Vegeta? Where's my daddy?" he asked.

Vegeta hesitated. He knew where Goku was — at Chi-chi's grave. But how could he tell this innocent, trusting child that his mother was dead?

"I'm here, son," Goku's soft voice said. Gohan ran into his father's arms. "Daddy! Where did you go?"

"Your father had to be alone for a while, Gohan," Tien said, when he saw Goku struggling to come up with a reply that wouldn't shatter his son. Goku shot him a grateful glance. Tien merely nodded and turned back to his conversation with Yamcha and Chiaotzu.

Vegeta glanced up at Android 17 again. "Do you know where my son is?"

17 nodded. "Yes. He's in the house, helping Master Roshi move some things."

The android paused. "Or they could be looking for some of Master Roshi's… uh… dirtier magazines. I couldn't say."

Vegeta hid his surprise. Who'd have thought 17 had a sense of humour?

Yamcha and Tien looked up suddenly. "Woah. Can you guys feel that?" Tien asked. The others nodded. "Yeah. It's Piccolo, isn't it?"

It was. Piccolo came into view seconds later, an evil smirk on his face. "At last I have you all together," he sneered. "I've been waiting for this day all my life. The day I KILL you all!"

Trunks and Master Roshi had just exited the house and froze when they saw the standoff. Goku and Vegeta had powered up to SSJ. But before either of them could do anything, there was a bright silver flash. All of them saw stars, and memories that never happened.

And then none of them saw anything.

****

Timeline: Somewhere in between 'Paix World' and 'Mi-Chemin World'

Chi-chi gently rocked baby Gohan as she waited for Goku to finish his training and come back for dinner. She smiled down at the sleeping baby. "Gohan. I just know you're going to grow up to be a scholar. Or something like that," she murmured.

Chi-chi felt a shiver run down her spine, as if she was being watched. She craned her neck but couldn't see anyone.

Suddenly, there was a bright silver flash. Chi-chi saw stars and flashes of impossible memory. And then she saw nothing at all, for a very long time…

****

Timeline: Somewhere between 'Mi-Chemin World' and 'Mauvais World'

Gohan glanced at Piccolo. The tall green Namek had been meditating for days, much longer than he normally did, and Gohan was starting to get worried about him. They'd lived in the forest together for over fifteen years, after the Saiyans had killed Gohan's parents, but Gohan had never seen Piccolo look so worried about anything.

Piccolo spoke without opening his eyes. "You can stop hovering over me, Gohan. I'm fine. I just want to clear my mind before we spar again."

The Namek actually grinned. "You're getting too strong for me," he said. Gohan laughed. "You said that when I was ten, Piccolo, and then again when I was fifteen."

Piccolo was about to say something else when there was a bright silver flash. He and Gohan saw stars and strange memories. Memories of Chi-chi and Goku, still alive, though they'd been killed when Gohan was barely six years old. Memories of Gohan fighting Piccolo, serious fighting, not training.

The memories were nothing that Piccolo and Gohan knew. They were almost relieved when the images were replaced with blackness.

****

Timeline: a world way, way worse than 'Mauvais World'

"Work, slaves!"

Gohan, son of Kakarott the King of Saiyans, glared down at the humans working in the radium mines. Such a weak species. Fortunate for them we came along. Now they can elevate their lives by working for such as the Saiyans! 

He looked down to the execution pits. There was going to be a public execution today, one of the Saiyans who had disobeyed the laws concerning slaves and what was appropriate contact with them.

Three of the slaves were looking up at Gohan with hatred written clear across their faces. This amused him. Most of the slaves had hated his kind at first, but now they were only feared. Ever since Kakarott had come and prepared the way for the Saiyans to begin their reign of terror.

Few humans hated the Saiyans now.

Few humans had the capacity to know what hate was.

Apparently, these three did. And it amused Gohan that they would dare look upon the Saiyan Prince with anything less than awe.

He flicked the whip down hard, leaving a bloody gash across the male slave's right shoulder. The younger woman let out a soft scream and moved to take a step forward. The man's hand on her shoulder restrained her. He shook his head and whispered something Gohan couldn't hear.

Just then, the trumpet sounded, the signal that the execution was about to begin. Gohan turned to the execution pit and watched as the guards dragged the doomed Saiyan into the light.

A collective gasp went up from the gathered Saiyans and slaves. Even Gohan had to restrain his surprise. It was Vegeta, his father's most loyal follower. What could HE have done to make Kakarott kill him?

Gohan's father walked out and stood in front of the Saiyans, who cheered. Gohan sneered slightly; such fools, even his own race. His father was nothing special. King, certainly, but nothing to cheer about.

"This Saiyan has done the unthinkable," Kakarott shouted. "He dared to fraternise with slaves when we first remade this world. That is a bad enough offense but I was willing to dismiss it. Then a week ago I found out something even more heinous. Twenty-three years ago, this Saiyan actually had a child with a slave!"

Gohan gasped. A Saiyan mating with a human? Disgusting! Now he could see why his father was going to destroy Vegeta. No matter how long ago, having a whelp with a human was NOT to be tolerated.

Kakarott sneered down at Vegeta. "Do you have any last words?" he asked. Vegeta spat in the King's face. "Baka," he hissed. Kakarott's expression darkened. "Destroy him!" he roared.

Before the guards could move, the slave Gohan had struck launched across the bare ground between him and the captive Vegeta. The two women followed, more out of concern for their stupid young friend that worry about the Saiyan. Gohan also flew across, trying to intercept the humans before they got in the way.

There was a silver flash just as Vegeta broke free of his guards and the younger man reached him. Gohan saw stars and flashes of memories full of humans. Humans who looked nothing like a slave should look. Humans calling him by name, calling his father 'Goku'. 

And then he saw nothing at all…

Chapter 2: Awakening

****

Timeline: Real World

Tamiran groaned and sat up, rubbing her head. Lying nearby were Bulma, Chi-chi, Yamcha and Tien. All four were still unconscious, but Tam could sense them beginning to awake.

It took a few minutes for them all to wake up. Tam waited impatiently, gazing around. They weren't on Master Roshi's island anymore. She wasn't sure WHERE they were, actually. Tam hardly ever left Master Roshi's island, except when something threatened the Earth, or if she was visiting her friends. But mainly she trained.

"Well, where do we go now?" Bulma asked. Tam smiled to herself. For such a fierce fighter, Bulma sure was an airhead. She acted like such a bimbo that the others had had trouble taking her seriously when they first met.

That is, until Bulma had kicked their butts. After that they admitted she was a good fighter, no matter how clueless.

The guys had had problems believing Chi-chi was a fighter too. She was… well, for lack of a better word, a sweetie. But she had the worst temper ever and once she was mad, you DIDN'T want to get in her way.

Chi-chi stood up and looked around. "Does ANYONE know where we are?" she asked. Tien and Yamcha shook their heads. Tam certainly didn't know. For all she knew, they could be in Madagascar or something.

"Where are the others?" Yamcha asked. Tam took another, longer look around and realised that he was right; they were the only ones there. Piccolo, Krillin, Chiaotzu and Master Roshi were nowhere to be seen.

On the plus side, neither were the two 'Saiyans'. Tam suppressed a shudder when she remembered how Kakarott had looked at her.

She sighed. "Well, we'd better find someplace where there are people. Let's get going."

All five powered up and began to fly towards what they hoped was civilisation.

Trunks hovered above the countryside near Capsule Corp and looked down at the kid lying asleep on the ground, underneath a huge oak tree. How such a little kid had gotten out here alone he didn't know, but maybe when the boy woke up Trunks could find out where he lived and take him home.

It didn't take long for the boy to wake. He stretched, as if he'd been asleep for a long time, and rubbed his eyes. He was holding a silver medallion clenched in one small fist.

The little boy looked up as Trunks landed near him. He was about five years old, with lilac hair and… an oversized Capsule Corp jacket that looked a hell of a lot like the prototype Bulma was working on.

Trunks knelt down to be on the kid's level. "Hey there. How'd you get out here?"

The kid sniffled. "Don't know."

"Okay. What's your name?" Trunks asked. The boy wiped his eyes and replied, "Trunks."

Oookay. This is weird. 

"Uh… Trunks… where are your parents?"

The kid's face crumpled. "Th-the bad man k-killed them," he stuttered. Trunks' eyes widened. "Geez… well, you want to come with me for a while? We'll look after you until…"

Okay, until what? And where IS this kid from? 

The kid nodded. "D-do you know where Gohan went?" he asked, his eyes pathetically hopeful. Trunks sighed. "I'm not sure," he said truthfully. Gohan could be anywhere. The boy looked downcast. "Chi-chi?" he asked. Trunks nodded. "Yes, I know where Chi-chi is. You want to go to her?"

The kid… I really should get used to calling him 'Trunks' Trunks thought to himself… nodded. Trunks scooped him up and took off toward Chi-chi and Goku's house.

Chi-chi heard footsteps outside. Amazing. Goten's actually on time for lunch, she thought, smiling to herself. She jumped as Trunks called, "Chi-chi? You home?"

"Yes!" she called back. "Come on in."

What's he doing here? And where IS Goten? 

Trunks walked in, carrying a little boy with lilac hair. Chi-chi smiled. "Well, who's this?" she asked, speaking in that tone people use around babies and little kids. Trunks replied, "well, as far as I can tell, a younger version of me. But he's from a realty where both my parents are dead."

The boy held out his arms to Chi-chi. Trunks continued, "he seems to know you, or at least a you. I think that you… another version of you… has been looking after him. He also knows Krillin, Gohan and 'the bad man'."

The boy looked up when Trunks said that. "The bad man?"

Chi-chi stroked his hair. "Don't worry. The bad man isn't here. You're safe now," she soothed. She looked up at Trunks… teenaged Trunks. "What do we do now? I mean, we don't know how to send him to his reality, and even if we did we couldn't send him back alone. We—"

A child's voice interrupted them. "Where is everyone, Daddy?"

Goku … or at least someone sounding a hell of a lot like Goku… answered. "I don't know, son. We'll find out tomorrow, after you've had some sleep."

The door opened and Goku walked in, trailing a little boy with black hair. And very familiar little boy with black hair.

"Gohan?" Chi-chi exclaimed. Goku stared at her as if he'd seen a ghost. 

"Chi-chi? But… but Piccolo killed you," he stammered. Kid-Trunks looked at each of them with wide eyes, as did kid-Gohan. Teenage-Trunks held up his hands. "Woah, wait a minute here. You're Goku?" he asked. Goku nodded.

"Okay then. But you think Chi-chi was killed by Piccolo."

"She was. We were there when it happened!" Goku cried. Kid-Gohan's lower lip trembled. "Mommy's dead?"

Trunks shook his head in frustration. "Okay, you think Chi-chi was killed. And that's Gohan. But the Gohan WE know is an adult. So… so obviously you're from an alternate reality. The same one as him?" he asked, gesturing to kid-Trunks. Goku… alternate-Goku… shook his head. "No. I've never seen him before."

"Great. So we've got two alternate realities here. All right then, how did you get here?"

"I'm not sure," alternate-Goku admitted. "The last thing I remember is Piccolo saying he'd kill us all, then a bright silver flash and stars."

Kid-Trunks nodded. "I saw silver," he said. "Then Gohan and Chi-chi were gone."

Chi-chi frowned. "Are you three the only ones to come here? Or are there more?" she asked. Trunks realised what she was getting at. "If others from your realities also got here, then… we could have an evil Piccolo on our hands, and who knows what else? Plus any of us who don't know this isn't where they come from."

Alternate-Goku looked shell-shocked. "Geez… this could be a problem."

I guess I should get up… Ugh. That hurts. Do I even WANT to get up? 

Gohan woke up but didn't move. From the way his body was aching, something was broken. He didn't really want to know what.

Still, I may as well get up. My day can't really get any worse. 

He opened his eyes and looked into the face of the person who'd made his life a living Hell for as long as Gohan could remember.

Android 17.

Nope, I was wrong. It just got WAY worse. 

The android was kneeling beside him, a concerned expression on his face. Gohan couldn't imagine why, unless it was concern over whether the android would have any fun killing someone who was hurt too badly to fight back.

Gohan scrambled away from 17, wincing at the pain in his obviously broken ankle. The android frowned and spoke.

"You really shouldn't do that. You'll hurt yourself worse."

He stood up and walked toward Gohan. The teenager powered up and threw a weak ki blast at the android. 17 moved to one side and let the blast detonate behind him. He looked back at Gohan with real concern in his icy eyes.

There's no way the REAL Android 17 would have let me live this long. Who can this one be, then? 

The android hadn't moved any closer. He just looked at Gohan, waiting.

"I'll wait until you've finished trying to destroy me. Maybe then I can get you some help," he said drily. "Unless of course you prefer lying in the dirt, trying to turn me into the world's biggest piece of burnt toast."

That clinched it. The real 17 had no sense of humour. Gohan still had no idea what was going on here, but he knew he needed medical attention, or at least a senzu bean. There was no way he was getting anywhere on his own; he was just too weak. Going with this android was probably the only way.

I'll go with him for now. But that doesn't mean I trust him. 

Tam slowed as she sensed a powerful being up ahead. "Hey guys, there's someone coming up," she reported. "It feels a little like Piccolo, but different somehow."

"Yeah," Chi-chi said slowly. "Kind of… bad. The way King Piccolo was, before you killed him."

They continued flying. After a few minutes they saw a green figure up ahead.

"Yep. It's Piccolo all right," Yamcha commented. The figure swiveled, as if he'd heard them coming. He looked right at them and grinned. A really, really creepy grin.

Bulma slowed down. "Guys, I have a bad feeling about this," she said. Yamcha laughed. "Bulma, you have a bad feeling about everything."

"This time it's not because there's a sale on at the department store!" Bulma yelled. "There's something wrong here!"

"Bulma's right," Chi-chi muttered, also slowing down. Tien, Yamcha and Tam halted and looked back at the two women. 

"Bulma? Chi-chi? Can you tell us exactly WHAT'S not right?" Tam asked. Chi-chi frowned. "Like I said, he feels like King Piccolo. Malevolent. I think something's up."

"Yeah. Plus his ki is lower than it should be," Bulma added. Tam looked back to the figure hovering in the distance and frowned. "I felt that, but I thought it was my imagination. What do you think it is?"

They didn't have time to hypothesise. Piccolo came out of nowhere, hurling energy blasts at them. Tam dodged a solar beam cannon and tried to throw a kamehameha back at him, but he grabbed Chi-chi and used her as a shield. Tien, Yamcha, Bulma and Tam looked for a way to at least stun the Namek, but he kept his eyes on all of them, his fangs bared angrily.

"Piccolo, what's gotten into you?" Tam asked. He snapped, "do not address me by that name, human! My name is King Piccolo and you would do well to remember it!"

All five of them gasped.

How is this possible? Tam wondered frantically. I KILLED King Piccolo years ago! 

The Namek didn't give them a chance to absorb that information. He pressed one hand to Chi-chi's shoulder and detonated a ki blast. Her body jerked as the energy raced through her. King Piccolo tossed her lifeless body at the four dumbstruck fighters and sped away.

Tien had caught Chi-chi's body and quickly checked it over. "She's still alive!" he cried. "But not for much longer, unless we get her help."

"VEGETA! If you don't get your butt in here in about TEN SECONDS you're gonna be one sorry Saiyan Prince!"

Bulma wasn't sure where Vegeta was; she just yelled loud enough for him to hear her if he was anywhere near Capsule Corp.

A few minutes passed in silence. Bulma frowned. Usually her summonses were answered immediately, even if Trunks was the one who answered, not Vegeta. But neither of them had acknowledged her presence.

She walked into the yard. Nobody was there, nor were they in the gravity chamber they had rigged in the training space.

There was a sudden flash of silver light. When Bulma's sight cleared, she gasped in shock. Standing in her yard were Chi-chi, Gohan, Trunks, Vegeta and… herself.

Gohan looked furious at someone. He lunged toward the small group huddled together on the grass, seemingly protecting Vegeta from Gohan. Trunks stood up and yelled, "you're not taking him from me again, bastard! You royal Saiyans have done enough to my world; I'm gonna do us all a favour and get rid of one!"

Bulma's eyes widened. Only one thing made sense to her: alternate timelines. And definitely not the timeline the other Trunks came from. These people, with the exception of Gohan who just looked pissed, looked beaten, down-trodden, defeated. The other version of herself was embracing the other Vegeta, tears streaming down both their faces, while the other Chi-chi was standing behind the other, older Trunks looking scared but determined.

Bulma ran into her lab and grabbed a couple of vials of the tranquiliser she'd been working on, as well as a dark gun. Dipping a few darts in the liquid, she ran back outside, took aim at Gohan and fired.

The dart hit and the tranquiliser took effect almost immediately. Gohan turned, snarled angrily at her and then hit the ground. The older Trunks glanced over and his eyes widened as he looked from her to the other Bulma.

Bulma approached them slowly, leaving the dark gun by the door. She held up her hands, hoping they wouldn't attack her.

Her counterpart looked up and smiled wearily. "I knew there were other realities out there," she said. "I never knew I'd see one for myself."

Alternate-Chi-chi was kneeling beside Vegeta. She looked up at Bulma and said, "look, I don't know what the f*** is going on here, but Vegeta needs medical help. The guards certainly like to torture people," she added bitterly.

Bulma nodded. "Get him inside and I'll see if we have any of Korrin's senzu beans left. I don't know how many Vegeta… my Vegeta… and my Trunks have used lately."

Alternate-Trunks and alternate-Bulma helped alternate-Vegeta limp into Capsule Corp. Bulma found the small sack of senzu beans and pulled a few out.

"Here. You all look like you could use one of these."

She explained what they did and then said, "look, do you guys mind me calling a few people? We really need to figure out what's going on. And I need to ask Goku how to keep a Saiyan down."

She injected alternate-Gohan with more tranquiliser before calling Goku's house. Chi-chi answered and she sounded more harried than usual. "Oh, Bulma. Look, I don't have a lot of time right now. There's—"

"Chi-chi, we have a problem. People are here from another timeline," Bulma interrupted, giving Chi-chi the short version. The other woman was silent for a few seconds then gasped, "you didn't get attacked by Piccolo did you?"

"Piccolo? No, why? What does he have to do with this?"

"Well, alternate-Goku, kid-Trunks and kid-Gohan all come from timelines where Piccolo is evil. We thought he might have come here too and when you said people from another timeline…"

Chi-chi trailed off. "This is NOT what we need right now!" she exclaimed. "Goku, Trunks, there are more people over at Capsule Corp. We should… oh my god."

The phone clattered to the ground. A minute later, Trunks picked it up. "Sorry about that, Okaachan. People from ANOTHER timeline came here with an injured alternate Chi-chi. She was… surprised."

He sighed. "Anyway, WE have Goku, kid me, kid Gohan, injured Chi-chi, you, Tien, Yamcha and a girl who looks like a Saiyan. And apparently they ran into evil Piccolo. Who do you have?"

"You, me, Vegeta, Chi-chi and a really evil Gohan," Bulma replied. "Um, you guys should probably come over here. If any other alternates show up, they'll either go there or here, and here is bigger."

"Yeah," Trunks agreed. "Okay. Okaachan, this is very weird."

Bulma hung up and turned to the others. "Some other people are gonna come here. Apparently there are more timelines than just yours and mine that have ended up here."

Chapter 3: Meet The Alternates

There was no stranger sight than the one in Capsule Corp about half an hour later. Bulma had called the other Z fighters, so besides the Z fighters who didn't have doubles — in other words, Krillin, Piccolo, Chiaotzu and Goten — there were three Bulmas, three Chi-chis, two Gokus, two Yamchas, two Tiens, adult Gohan and kid Gohan, teenage Trunks and kid Trunks and two Vegetas, as well as the unconscious evil-Gohan and the girl who looked like a Saiyan. The alternate Yamcha and Tien, and the Bulma and Chi-chi who came from that time, called the girl Tam.

What made things more complicated was the way Bulma-2 kept making googy-eyes at Yamcha-2. The other Bulmas were more than a little confused and annoyed, not to mention the two Vegetas. Tam noticed them glaring at Bulma-2 and Yamcha-2 and laughed. "They're always like that," she commented.

Gohan — the Gohan from this world, adult Gohan — was holding kid-Trunks-4 on his lap. The little boy was shy of the others and flat-out refused to go anywhere near Piccolo. They'd guessed that the Namek must be evil in kid-Trunks' world, which meant he was evil in two worlds, since Goku-2 had said he'd never seen kid-Trunks before.

"So let me get this straight," Tam said, leaning forward. "We'll call this the real world, since we all got temporally shifted here. So there's my world — Alternate Reality 1, where there's been no evil since I killed King Piccolo. Then there's Goku-2's world — Alternate Reality 2, where Goku killed King Piccolo but Piccolo Jr never became good. How am I doing so far?"

"Sounds about right," Trunks-1 said. Tam nodded and continued, "then there's kid-Trunks' world — Alternate Reality 3, where either King Piccolo was never destroyed or Piccolo Jr never became good, as well as another evil guy. And THEN there's the world where the Saiyans rule Earth. So we have four alternate realities so far."

"No, I'd say there are more," Chi-chi said. A Chi-chi who had just walked in, holding a baby Gohan. She sighed. "Well, this is awkward. You guys know me. I'm from ANOTHER alternate reality, I guess."

She gestured to someone behind her. "Get in here. I know it's weird seeing yourself as a baby but I can tell you it's weirder for me seeing you as an adult."

Piccolo and another adult Gohan walked up from behind Chi-chi. Tam looked around the now-crowded room and threw up her hands. "Great. SIX alternate realities. What next?"

Tien-2 answered that. "Guys? I can feel Gohan's ki heading toward us. And he doesn't feel strong."

Minutes later, two figures came into view. One was a teenaged Gohan. Helping him fly — actually, pretty much carrying him — was Android 17.

Vegeta-1 and Trunks-1 powered up as soon as they saw Android 17 but Goku-3 shook his head. "No. He's on our side. Dr. Briefs reprogrammed him once we'd destroyed Cell. He works with us now. Helps us fight Piccolo."

Kid Trunks-4 took one look at the fast-approaching 17 and burst into tears. Gohan-1 tried to comfort him but the little boy was hysterical.

"Little guy obviously doesn't like Android 17," he said. "So maybe there's a good 17 and a 17 who's still evil. But which one is this?"

"Gohan looks hurt," Chi-chi-1, 2 and 5 cried together. Goku-1 nodded. "Yeah. But we still have senzu beans and there are WAY more of us than that android, if it is evil."

The android landed a few metres away from them, helping the other Gohan to stay on his feet. "Steady," he murmured. "We're here. Though from the looks of things I have as bad a reputation among this bunch as I do with you."

He looked up and his eyes caught kid-Gohan-3's. "Gohan!"

"What?" all the Gohans except baby Gohan-5 asked. The android shook his head. "Okay, whatever's going on here is gonna have to wait. This guy needs help. I figured Dr Briefs would be able to do something."

The other Gohan looked up and saw kid Trunks-4. "Trunks! You're okay," he cried. The boy reached out to his friend, but adult Gohan-1 shook his head. "Not just yet, buddy. He's hurt," he told kid Trunks-4.

They helped teenage Gohan-4 into Capsule Corp and gave him a senzu bean. Within minutes, he'd recovered and was eyeing Android 17 with mingled suspicion and gratitude.

"Okay, why'd you help me?" he asked. The android looked surprised. "You reminded me of Gohan… the Gohan I know. The little boy," he said. "Besides, whatever my counterpart did in this timeline, I'm not him. I know I did a lot of bad things when I was evil, but I'm not like that anymore. Ask anyone from my timeline."

Goku-3 nodded. "He's telling the truth. He's been with us for years now, since… since a few years after Bulma was killed."

Kid Gohan-3 looked up from where he was sitting beside Android 17. From what Goku-3 had told them, Gohan-3 hadn't known Bulma, but he still knew that death was a bad thing.

Trunks-1 shook his head. "Okay, so why are all you guys showing up in our timeline? And why just you? Why not anyone else?"

"We were all together," Bulma-2 said. "Tien, Tam, Chi-chi, Yamcha and I. But I don't understand… Chiaotzu, Krillin, Piccolo and Master Roshi were there too. As well as Kakarott and Vegeta."

"Maybe when we got sent here, the temporal displacement scattered us a little," Tam suggested. "After all, us five WERE closest together, remember? I'd just thrown a blast at Vegeta and Kakarott. Piccolo was standing away from everyone, Master Roshi and Krillin were nearer the house and Chiaotzu was in the air somewhere. You four were about to do something stupid, like jump in and get yourselves killed, and I flew near you. Then there was that silver flash."

"We saw a silver flash and stars," Chi-chi-7 commented. Not that there were seven Chi-chis — that's just the way they'd figured out the numbering. Everyone from Tam's world was a 2. Everyone from the world where 17 wasn't evil was a 3. And so on.

Adult Gohan-6 shook his head. "Wait, doesn't that mean there are more of us out there somewhere? I mean, we've got people from seven different realities here. There have to be more somewhere. The others from Tam's world, and AR2."

"And Krillin, Chi-chi, King Piccolo and evil 17 from my world," Gohan-5 said tiredly. Goku-3 frowned. "What about the others?" he asked. Gohan-5 just looked at hi, an unreadable expression on his face.

"They're all dead. We're the only ones left."

Videl, Pan and Bra were watching all this, inwardly glad that they didn't have any alternates, but also kind of pissed that they didn't have any alternates. They weren't sure which was better. 

In AR1 Goku was still Kakarott and Vegeta was still the jerky Saiyan Prince. Apparently Tam was Goku's counterpart. Bulma and Chi-chi fought with her and there'd been no major evil after King Piccolo, but the people were basically the same, except with no Gohan, Trunks or Goten. Or Pan, Videl or Bra.

In AR2, Bulma and Chi-chi had been killed by evil Piccolo, Bulma seventeen years ago, Chi-chi five days ago. Krillin had also been killed by evil Piccolo a while ago, and Android 17 had been reprogrammed to help fight evil Piccolo. Trunks and Gohan's ages were reversed; Trunks was apparently eighteen. Everything there had happened like it did in this timeline otherwise.

In AR3 almost everyone was dead due to the carnage caused by King Piccolo and Android 17, who had never been destroyed after Cell. All the Z fighters except Krillin, Gohan, Chi-chi and kid Trunks were dead.

In AR4 everything seemed normal, just a few years behind. Then Chi-chi had mentioned Goku training for when the Nameks got there. She'd seemed surprised at the shock on their faces and explained that in her timeline, the Nameks were evil bastards.

In AR5, Chi-chi and Goku had been killed when Gohan was six and he'd grown up in the forest with Piccolo. The two didn't know much about what else was going on, but the Earth hadn't been destroyed so they figured it was all okay and that they hadn't been needed for anything else.

And in AR6, everyone was a slave and Gohan was an evil Saiyan Prince. And Vegeta had almost been executed for having Trunks twenty-two years ago.

These timelines are very confusing, Pan thought to herself, watching the others talk about what might have happened.

Bra was also watching, mainly entranced by how many Gohans there were. There was her Gohan, Gohan-1, the real one. Then there was Kid Gohan — Gohan-3 — who was younger than she was, which amused the little girl. And then there was the one she called Warrior Gohan, because he looked so much like Otousan — Gohan-4. And then there was Baby Gohan — Gohan-5. She hadn't known he was Gohan until Chi-chi5 started calling him that, trying the get him to go to sleep.

And then there was Forest Gohan — Gohan-6, so called because he said he'd grown up in the forest with Mr. Piccolo. And THEN there was Scary Gohan — Gohan-7, the one that Okaachan was making stay asleep.

Pan looked up at Videl. "Okaachan?"

"Yes honey?"

"What's going on?"

"I really don't know," Videl replied. "Hopefully they can figure it out."

"There are too many versions of Otousan," Pan complained. Videl nodded. "I know, honey."

"Okaachan? Can we go home now? They don't need us," Pan said hopefully. Videl sighed. "I'd like to, Pan, but I want to stay here until your father… OUR version of your father… is done here."


	2. 

Chapter 4: Beginning Battle

Chapter 4: Beginning Battle

****

Timeline: Two nights after the arrival of the alternates

Bulma-1 sat at the kitchen table at about midnight, thinking. Mainly about all the 'new' people there were.

In the past two days, most of the other alternates had shown up, either at Capsule Corp, Goku's place or Master Roshi's island, depending on what reality they were from.

From AR-1, Tam's world, Krillin, Chiaotzu, Piccolo and Master Roshi. From AR-2, Vegeta, Trunks, Yamcha, Tien and Chiaotzu. From AR-3, Krillin and Chi-chi.

Apparently, if the evil people from those worlds had been sucked into this timeline, they were staying away from the Z warriors… for now.

Bulma injected another dose of sedative into Gohan-7's veins. Trunks-7 had explained that in their world, Goku was King Kakarott, making Gohan the Prince, and Earth had been taken over by the Saiyans.

Bulma shook her head. All this alternate stuff was confusing, even to her. It was bad enough when Trunks came from the future… now we have to deal with seven different timelines! And who knows how many evil people from those timelines. 

She heard footsteps and turned. Android 17 was standing at the door, baby-Gohan-5 in his arms. The baby was half-asleep but tears were leaking from his eyes.

"I think Gohan's hungry," the android said. Bulma nodded. "Okay, come with me and I'll see what I have that babies can eat."

It still felt weird to be trusting the android, after everything his counterpart had done in this reality. None of the others really knew what to make of it, either. The only two who were comfortable around him were Goku-3 and kid-Gohan-3.

"Here," she said, filling one of Bra's old bottles with warmed-up milk. "See if he likes this."

She watched, half-amazed, as the android gently fed the baby, talking to him softly. This was a big change to the arrogant, destructive android from her own time.

Wow… he's really good with kids, she thought, surprised. Then she asked, "why are you looking after him? Shouldn't Chi-chi be taking care of her own son?"

Android 17 replied, "he was crying, and I didn't want to disturb Chi-chi. I remember what it was like when Gohan… the Gohan in my time… was a baby. I figured she could use all the rest she can get."

When baby-Gohan-5 had finished Android 17 stood up. "I'd better get him back before Chi-chi notices he's missing. I can imagine what she'd say if she found out I'd been anywhere near him."

The android's tone was filled with bitterness. Bulma watched, speechless at the emotion he'd shown, as he took baby-Gohan-5 back upstairs to where Chi-chi-5 was still asleep. He didn't return, but when she looked out the window she could see him flying toward the mountains.

Poor guy, she though. But still, we can't exactly forget everything he… the other him… did… dammit, this is just too confusing. I can't get my head around it right now. 

Android 17 landed, high up the mountainside. In his world, he'd come here all too often, when the guilt over what he'd done when he was evil got too much for him.

Looks like I'm going to be feeling a hell of a lot more in this world, he thought. He understood why the humans, Saiyans and Namek didn't trust him; from what he'd heard, he'd been worse in this world than his own.

He stared up at the star-filled sky. He didn't know why, but things like the beauty of the stars always made the burden a little easier to bear.

You're turning into 16, he told himself. Next you'll be talking to the birds or something. 

A voice interrupted his thoughts. "Hello, brother."

17 turned to face… himself. Himself with an evil smirk on his face, looking like a child at Christmas… if a child was a demon, anyway.

The alternate 17 grinned. "I'd been wondering when I'd find you. After all, with so many different timelines there had to be another me somewhere. Tell me, was the 18 in your time destroyed as well? Or are you still fighting with her?"

17 didn't answer. He was too shell-shocked at the sight of another him… an evil one, from the looks of things. The other android simply kept talking.

"Is King Piccolo still in your timeline? He's a good fighter, for a flesh and blood creature. We'd killed a lot of those pathetic warriors before we were dragged here. Which did you kill in your time?"

"I don't kill people," Android 17 answered, trying to keep the disgust and horror out of his voice. So this is what he would be now, if he hadn't been reprogrammed. A ruthless killing machine. The very idea made him shudder.

Alternate-17 frowned. "What? You DON'T kill people? What's gotten into you?"

His face clouded with anger. "It was that Briefs woman, wasn't it? She reprogrammed you! Turned you into a weakling like them."

"Bulma-san had nothing to do with it," 17 said, hoping to keep this murderous version of himself away from Capsule Corp and the sleeping warriors. The other android chuckled. "If not her, then one of them. And they'll pay. You should be fighting them, not acting like a weak human. But don't worry, we'll soon see you strong again, brother."

"You're no brother of mine, you monster," 17 hissed. The alternate android laughed. "But I am. Don't you see? We are the same. And we were made for the same thing: to destroy these pitiful creatures one by one."

"17, what the hell are you talking to?" a rough voice asked as a green-skinned Namek floated to the ground. Android 17 tensed; it was Piccolo. But which Piccolo? The one from his time was evil, but the Piccolo in this time was with the Z warriors. And from what Gohan-4 had said, King Piccolo still existed in his time.

"Keep out of this, Piccolo," alternate-17 snapped. "This is my business."

King Piccolo then. Only his ally would dare talk to the powerful Namek that way. 17 looked from the Namek to the alternate android, wondering which one he would have a chance to beat before they destroyed him. There was no way he could go up against Piccolo-4 AND himself.

The Namek looked at him, his lip curling in disgust. "Is this the android you were prattling about? He may look like you, 17, but he's no great warrior. Not if he fights with them."

"Test his power then," alternate-17 invited. King Piccolo-4 smiled nastily. "Of course. It will show what we are going to go up against, anyway. None of the Z warriors were as strong as you; they won't be as strong as this one. If we can defeat him, we can defeat the others."

They moved faster than 17 could follow. Obviously King Piccolo-4 was faster than the Piccolo Android 17 had fought in his time. The android could barely see where King Piccolo-4 was, let alone land a hit on him.

King Piccolo roared in delight as he hurled ki blasts at the android. The creature was strong and fast, but he was no match for a Namek and the most powerful creation on the face of the Earth.

Still, nothing King Piccolo had ever fought had put up this much of a fight. Not even Goku and Vegeta had fought for this long. He almost admired the android's stubbornness… even if it was about to get the creature killed.

17, King Piccolo's ally, was watching, smirking. He'd had his bit of fun, but he relegated the actual destruction of his counterpart to King Piccolo.

The Namek flew closer for a bit of hand-to-hand. He usually detested actually touching an inferior creature, but this time might be worth it.

He punched a fist of iron into the android's stomach, enjoying the grunt of pain the creature let out. He smashed his hands down on the android's back, slamming it to the ground in a cloud of dust.

He waited while the dust cleared, revealing the android on his hands and knees, coughing up blood. Android 17 laughed outright. "So weak," he sneered. "That's what comes of having remorse, brother!"

King Piccolo glanced toward the city on the horizon. "A large power level is heading this way," he said. While he wanted to fight the Z warriors, he wanted to savour the experience of picking them off one by one, on his own terms.

17 nodded. "Yes, I can feel them. Finish him up and we'll wait until we're ready to kill them."

King Piccolo slammed a ki blast into the android's back. That must have finished him, he thought to himself. Followed by 17, he flew off into the night, leaving the motionless body if the android for the Z warriors to find.

18, Krillin-1 and Goku-3 flew as fast as they could toward the mountains. They'd felt a large power level there, as if someone was fighting. Krillin and 18 had asked Krillin-2 to look after Marron until they got back, and surprisingly, Vegeta-3 had offered to take care of kid-Gohan-3.

When they reached the place the power level had originated from, it was deserted. They hovered, looking for any signs of life.

18's sharp eyes picked up an unmoving human figure on the ground below them. "Krillin, Goku-san, there," she cried, pointing to the person. The three fighters zoomed down for a closer look.

It was Android 17. Goku-3 looked horrified as 18 gently turned his body over. She looked up and said, "he's not dead, Goku-san. Bloody near, though. I don't know how much we can do."

Goku-3 hefted his friend's body and launched himself into the air. "I'm not going to let him die," he said fiercely. "You guys might not trust him but I know him. He'd do the same for any of us."

Chapter 5: Memories

__

We are forced to watch whenever the Saiyans execute someone. Time and time again people close to me are killed, people I'd grown up with, learnt to work with.

__

Today is been so much worse. We're all dragged to yet another public execution, of 'a dangerous rebel', or so the Saiyans say. I'm afraid to think of who it is, but in my heart I know. Tien has been gone for five days now, long enough for the Saiyans to have gotten tired of torturing him. Chances are, this execution will be Tien's.

__

The Saiyans force us to watch as King Kakarott comes out and does his regular spiel about 'rebels against us', 'conspirators against the Saiyan Empire', shit like that. Most of the other humans listen tiredly, vacant expressions on their faces. Most of the other humans have been beaten down into little more than beasts. The only ones who have any spirit left, like Okaachan and Chi-chi-san, are usually killed.

__

And now Tien is dragged out, chained hand and foot. He still fights against the Saiyans but he's outnumbered by too much. They chain him to the stone pillar in the center of the execution pit and stand back, letting Helia and Addis, the two executioners, come forward.

__

The two Saiyans aim at Tien and fire, slow, continuous ki blasts that eat through his body agonisingly slowly. It must hurt like hell, but he refuses to let them see how much it hurts him, until the very end. My brave friend would never give them that satisfaction.

__

I close my eyes and look away as the ki blasts finally do their job and Tien dies with one pain-filled scream. And then King Kakarott sneers, "let that be a lesson to any humans who want to try and defy me!"

__

I turn and run from the execution pit, tasting bile in my throat. The Saiyan guards let me go. The execution is over, the humans must return to work. They don't care what one human youth does.

__

I run until the sounds of the slave camp are lost behind me as I enter the forest. The trees close around me, devoid of any animal life. The Saiyans have destroyed everything they can't use.

__

I trip on a tree root and stumble. A strong hand grabs my elbow and steadies me.

__

"Look out, boy. You don't want to get yourself hurt or the Saiyans will wonder what you've been up to."

__

The voice seems vaguely familiar. Something I only remember as dreams.

__

I look at the hand that steadies me. Not a large hand, but still undeniably a man's hand. Encased in a white glove… my gaze travels up the body of the one who spoke.

__

A strong, lithe body in blue and white Saiyan armour. A proud, chiseled face with dark eyes and high cheekbones. Spiky hair that stands up from the crown of his head.

__

I try to jerk away from the Saiyan but the other man holds my arm in an iron grip. "Don't shy away from me, boy. I'm not going to bite."

__

"You're a Saiyan!"

__

"Yes, but what does that mean? Are all humans little more than animals now? Looking at you, I hardly think so."

__

"What do you want with me, Saiyan?"

__

"Relax, boy, I just want to talk. And it's 'Vegeta', not Saiyan."

__

"Talk then. I can't guarantee I'll listen."

__

The Saiyan who calls himself Vegeta sighs. "You're so much like your mother, Trunks," he commented. "Both of you are so willful and stubborn. It's a good trait."

__

"How do you know my name? And what do you know about my Okaachan?"

__

"I loved her once. I still do, though it's been twenty years since I saw her last. She was a beautiful woman… I knew that even speaking with her, much less doing what we did, could very well cost me my life. But she was worth it."

__

His voice… it's so familiar. The voice I hear in his sleep every night, a distant memory. Someone I had once called…

__

"Otousan?"

__

Vegeta smiles. "Yes. You are my son."

__

"We thought so. We just needed proof."

__

A cold voice speaks from the trees. We whirl around to see a group of Saiyan guards, all scowling blackly at Vegeta.

__

The larger, bald Saiyan speaks. "A human, Vegeta? You know this will mean your death."

__

They surround us. There are too many of them; we are overcome in minutes.

__

The Saiyans drag Vegeta… Otousan… away, leaving me half-conscious. The bald Saiyan spits at me and growls, "forget this day, halfling, or it will be your death too."

__

"Otousan… father… NO!"

"Trunks! Wake up!"

Trunks opened his eyes to see Gohan-6 leaning over him. "Geez, man, what was that about?" Gohan asked. Trunks shook his head. "Nightmare," he said softly. "Just a nightmare."

At the same time, Gohan-4 was sitting outside, holding kid-Trunks-4 on his lap and talking to him about Bulma and Vegeta.

"Your father was a great fighter, kid. One of the strongest. There were times we thought he was even stronger than Goku. And he was a good man, hard to know but he had a pure heart," Gohan said, half in the past himself.

"And your mother was easily the smartest woman on the face of the Earth. She was pretty, too, brains and beauty together. It's easy to see why Vegeta fell in love with her.

"And she cared about all of us as if we were all her family. I guess once her parents were gone, we were. She was brave, too, one of the bravest people I've ever met."

Trunks was looking up at Gohan's face, one hand tugging on the silver medallion around Gohan's neck. Gohan looked down at it and touched it with one hand.

"Yeah… you remember the day I got this, Trunks? Hope not… no kid should have to remember something like that."

__

**** Krillin and I had been in the inner city that day, checking for any survivors of King Piccolo and Android 17's senseless massacre. But there was no sign of life. And no sign of our enemies.

Now I know why.

The shelter is desecrated, smoke rising from burnt sections. We land among the wreckage, dreading what we're about to find.

"M-maybe they weren't here," Krillin says without much hope in his voice. We both knew that the others had stayed with Chi-chi, Bulma and 3-year-old Trunks in case 17 or King Piccolo showed up.

We pick our way through the rubble, reminding me of when they'd found Goku and Vegeta's bodies, not so long ago. I shiver, remembering how 17 had been waiting for us to discover his handiwork before he attacked again, this time taking Chiaotzu's life.

There's movement not too far away. I sprint over and lifted broken boards off Chi-chi.

"Okaachan! Are you all right?"

Chi-chi nods. "Yes. I'm fine, and so is Trunks," she says, scooping up the little boy. "Wh-where are the others?"

I see movement beyond Okaachan. "Krillin, stay with Okaachan," I say, walking toward the movement.

Tien is lying face-up, half-buried under metal struts that had held up the shelter for so long. There's an almost peaceful expression on his face that only came in death.

I close my eyes briefly, futilely denying my friend's death. Then I keep looking.

My brother is sprawled across the dirt floor, blood trickling from his mouth, ears and nose. I clench my fists and hiss under my breath, trying to control my anger.

Yamcha lies a few feet away, his body thrown across Bulma's, as if he'd been protecting her from something. As I get closer and saw the state of Yamcha's back, where a ki blast has ripped through him, I know that Yamcha had given up his life in a desperate attempt to protect the woman who had once been the love of his life.

Bulma's hand moves feebly. I gently move Yamcha's body aside and kneel beside Bulma's broken body, holding her head in me lap. "Bulma… god, not you too," I choke, tears dropping onto her face. She gives a weak smile. "Don't… don't cry for me, Gohan… I'll be with Vegeta, Goku, Yamcha… I'll see them all again.

"God… he was trying to protect me. It was too late for Tien and Goten… we'd seen Chi-chi and Trunks go down under the boards… 17 wouldn't think to look there…we were the only ones they could go after. He gave his life for me… I didn't know he cared that much anymore… but it didn't work…"

I shake my head, trying to deny it. "No. You can't die, Bulma. I can't lose you too."

Bulma coughs weakly and drags her silver necklace from around her neck, the medallion hanging from it glinting in the dim light. "Give… give this to Trunks when he's old enough to understand…" she says, blood bubbling up to colour her lips bright red. I slip the medallion around my neck, nodding. "I will," I promise. "I'll look after Trunks for you."

"Thank you," she whispers. And she breaths no more.

I gently close her eyelids and lay her body on the floor. Then I turn to Chi-chi, who is holding Trunks to her chest, hugging him fiercely. I enfold her and Trunks into a hug, tears still wet on my cheeks. And I vowed that King Piccolo and Android 17 won't get away with this… ****

Gohan dashed the tears from his cheeks. It's just too much to see them all alive again! I know that they're not the people I knew, but to see them all again… Otousan, all my friends… I never thought I'd see them again… 

Goku-3 sat beside the regen tank where Android 17 was healing. Kid-Gohan-3 was half-asleep on Goku's lap. It had been over two days since they'd found the android but Gohan had refused to leave his father. And Goku wouldn't leave until he was certain his friend would either be okay, or…

Don't even THINK that, Goku told himself angrily. Remember all the times you thought he was dead? And all the times you thought the others were dead? This is no different. He's going to MAKE IT GODDAMNIT! 

Yamcha-3 walked into the room. "Goku, you've been in here for hours. I think you should get some sleep," he said. "Believe me, 17'll understand if you're not here when he wakes up. He wouldn't want you to be unprepared if whoever did this shows up."

"I know. But remember that time when Tien and Chiaotzu were almost killed by Cell? He never left their sides until they woke up."

"Goku, you're dead on your feet!" Yamcha protested. "Besides, as much as you and Vegeta hate to admit it, 17 has better endurance than even a Saiyan. Now are you going to go to bed or am I gonna have to make you?"

"Make me? I'd kick your ass," Goku protested, standing up. Bed DID sound awfully inviting. Yamcha grinned. "I know. That's why you're gonna go to bed. Because you don't want to fight me."

"Damn you Yamcha," Goku said good-naturedly. "You know me too well."

He and kid-Gohan-3 left the room. Yamcha was about to sit beside the regen tank when the weights caught his eye. Hmm. May as well get a workout while I'm here. After all, we have to stay in training for whatever might have followed us here. 

But the sight of 17's motionless body stirred more memories than Yamcha cared to think about. Memories of Goku in the same vulnerable state, memories, however dim, of Bulma's death. Android 17 had tried to stop Piccolo from harming Vegeta's wife, but he had failed. And taken that failure too seriously, until Vegeta had told the android that he didn't blame him for Piccolo's evil.

He walked closer to the regen tank. He'd never seen one so close before; usually when one of the Z fighters needed it, he was somewhere closer to Piccolo. Fighting him but never quite succeeding in killing him.

Android 17 could have been sleeping if not for the bruises. He had an almost peaceful expression on his face as he floated in the liquid of the tank. An oxygen mask covered his mouth and nose; they still hadn't figured out a way to ask if androids breathed, and when they put him in the tank they figured it was better to be safe than sorry.

Looking at 17 made Yamcha remember that first battle after 17 had been reprogrammed. The android had sure been a great help then.

__

**** Piccolo hovers above us, holding Trunks in front of him as a shield. Twisting the younger guy's arms behind his back, virtually holding him immobile. How long can this standoff last?

We're all ranged around Piccolo, looking for some way to get him and not Trunks. We weren't ready when he attacked Capsule Corp, weren't ready when he swooped down and grabbed Trunks to use him as protection. Protection against us.

Are we really that much of a threat to him? Goku, Vegeta and Trunks, maybe, but the rest of us?

Still, as Goku told me the other day, those of us who take the sidelines when the Super Saiyans power up are a lot stronger than most people think.

Trunks twists in Piccolo's grip, earning another small ki blast through his back to keep him manageable. I shoot a quick glance at Vegeta; he looks as though he could shoot Piccolo with his gaze. I'm not surprised; he and Trunks are pretty damned close. When we thought Cell had killed Vegeta… whew. I was glad Trunks was on OUR side.

The others look about as tense as I feel. Gohan's down with Chi-chi; I just hope Piccolo doesn't decide to trade one hostage for a more manageable one. We have to keep his attention away from the ground.

Goku is powering up to Super Saiyan. Piccolo notices and shouts, "go any further, monkey-boy, and this one is going to regret it!"

When Goku doesn't stop instantly Piccolo shoots a larger ki blast into Trunks. The teenager writhes in pain, and a low groan filters down to us. Vegeta grinds his teeth; I can feel his anger emanating from him. If we don't do something soon he's gonna crack.

Tien and Chiaotzu are to my left, Vegeta, Goku and 17 to my right. It's strange to be fighting alongside 17 after all this time trying to kill him, but I guess it's a risk we have to take. He's powerful, more powerful than even Goku. He could be a good ally.

Piccolo laughs. "What, you value the life of this halfling so much?" he calls. Trunks tries to twist away again; Piccolo growls and clamps one arm tight around his neck. "Stop trying to fight me," he says. "Even you, a half-Saiyan, must see that it's pointless."

Trunks is struggling to breathe now; we have to do something. But what?

Android 17 speaks up. "Namek! Are you so weak that you have to threaten him? I'm a much stronger fighter than he is; why not challenge me?"

Piccolo is interested now. He's seen 17 fight, albeit against us. I can almost hear the gears in his evil brain turning.

I hope he makes up his mind quickly. Trunks has stopped struggling now and I'm afraid he could be seriously hurt. 17 obviously sees it; he calls, "the offer won't last forever, Namek. Fight me now if you will, or if you're too scared then run away."

"The others are to be left out of it," Piccolo snaps. 17 nods. "Of course. I fight better one-on-one anyway."

Piccolo lets Trunks' limp body drop. Vegeta catches his son as 17 streaks upward to where Piccolo hovers. "Get him out of here!" he roars, scarcely looking back. And then he and Piccolo are fighting.

I've never seen so much raw power. The fight is brutally short; Piccolo turns tail and runs. 17 doesn't bother pursuing him, just floats down to where Vegeta is still holding Trunks.

"Is he going to be okay?"

Vegeta nods. "Yes, I think so. Thanks to you." ****


	3. 6: Piccolo vs. Piccolo

Chapter 4: Beginning Battle

Chapter 7: Piccolo vs. Piccolo

Piccolo-6 flew toward the forest where he and Gohan-6 had lived in their time. All the Z fighters were a little overwhelmed by everything that was going on, and it was worse for Piccolo-6 and Gohan-6, having lived alone most of their lives.

Everyone pretty much avoided seeing Gohan-7 too much. It was creepy thinking that the serious, friendly guy most of them knew, whether as a child, teenager or adult, could be so evil.

Tam had flown off somewhere. She was a little uncomfortable around all the Gokus, since in her time every incident was the same, except that she was there instead of Goku.

Piccolo halted suddenly. There was a high power level coming from the forest. It felt strangely familiar, so he flew closer to investigate.

He centered in on a small wooden shack nestled among the trees, almost hidden from view. He heard conversation coming from inside and crept closer.

"Now that we've taken care of the scrap metal we can concentrate on the others."

That was a voice that sounded vaguely familiar, although Piccolo couldn't quite place it. The reply came in a voice he **_did_** know: Android 17.

"Relax why don't you. We've got plenty of time to kill every pathetic creature on this planet. I want to have some fun first."

Piccolo moved closer until he could see in the small, dirty window.

Android 17 was sitting cross-legged on the floor, watching someone pace across the floor. The someone moved into view.

He was almost an exact copy of Piccolo, but he seemed different, different from Piccolo 1, 2 **_and_** 6, though he couldn't quite see how.

And then he realised: the difference was the utter evil emanating from the other Namek.

This must be King Piccolo… Piccolo-4, Piccolo thought. Gohan-4 had explained how, in his world, King Piccolo and Android 17 were allies. And an almost unbeatable team that had destroyed most of the Z fighters, doing what Cell couldn't.

King Piccolo's eyes suddenly shifted to the window. "17, I think we have company."

The two flew outside, where Piccolo-6 was waiting for them. The sight of another _him_, working with something so evil, filled him with disgust. King Piccolo laughed. "Well, 17, we faced **_your_** copy, now it seems it's time to face **_mine_**."

"**_You_** did that to 17?" Piccolo asked, horrified. The injuries the android had sustained were awful; he'd been in the regen tank for two days with no sign of changing.

King Piccolo grinned. "I certainly did. And I believe I killed the woman you call Chi-chi."

No, that was wrong. Chi-chi had been hurt, but after a senzu bean she was fine. Why let King Piccolo know that, though.

17 looked from one Namek to the other. He shook his head. "Whatever. I don't need to see this."

He took off. Piccolo tracked his flight with his eyes, trying to figure out where he was headed. And in that moment, King Piccolo attacked.

They used hand-to-hand mainly, since the small clearing they were in was too small for energy attacks, and neither wanted to turn his back on the other long enough to get into the sky.

King Piccolo landed a hard punch on Piccolo's jaw. Piccolo retaliated with a kick to the other Namek's gut. And then the fight was too fast to follow.

Caught up in the action, Piccolo barely had time to telepathically contact Gohan-6.

__

Gohan! Be careful, I think an evil Android 17 may be heading your way! Was all he got out before turning back to the fight with his evil counterpart.

œœœ

Gohan-6's head jerked up as he heard Piccolo-6's urgent telepathic message.

__

Gohan! Be careful, I think an evil Android 17 may be heading your way!

Evil Android 17? Actually, from what Gohan-4, Chi-chi-4 and Krillin-4 had said, that made a lot of sense. It also made a lot of what 17 had said while he was barely conscious make more sense.

The other Z fighters who were there looked at him curiously. He said, "guys, Piccolo thinks an evil 17 might be coming here. I'm not sure where he is but he sounded in a hurry so he's probably battling someone."

Trunks-3, Tien-3, Tien-2, Piccolo-2, Trunks-1 and Yamcha-3 were the only ones there. However, they were pretty confident that they could deal with Android 17, when he showed up.

And he **_did_** show up. Only it was from a direction they hadn't expected.

A scream came from inside, cut off midway through. The Z warriors ran inside and stopped short. 17… the evil 17, since he didn't look beat up… was holding Bulma-7 tightly around her waist, one arm around her neck, cutting off a lot of oxygen. He grinned at the warriors.

"So nice to see you all again. Nicer to kill you all, of course, but that can wait. For now I only want my brother."

"He's kind of indisposed right now," Gohan-6 said. "You know, on account of you almost **_killing_** him?"

"What was the point?" Trunks-3 asked. "If you were going to come back for him why try to kill him first?"

"Oh, that was King Piccolo's idea," 17 said dismissively. "I've talked him round; we both agree it makes more sense to try and make my brother rejoin us."

He looked down at Bulma. "It would be a pity if I had to kill this pretty woman," he said, "but I'm willing to, if you don't help me out here. I **_want_** my **_brother_** and **_you're_** going to tell me where he is."

"He's hurt," Tien-2 snapped. The android laughed. "Of course he is. That makes it easier to control him until we can change his programming back to what it **_should_** be, before the Briefs woman in his time meddled with him."

He pulled his arm tighter around Bulma's neck, choking her. "Now **_tell_ _me_ _where_ _he_ _is_**. Or be prepared to lose another Bulma-san."

A blast suddenly hit the android in the back, sending him sprawling across the floor. Bulma twisted out of his grip and jumped up. They all stared at Gohan-4, who was standing behind the android, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Get out of here, scum," Gohan-4 hissed angrily. "Get out of here before I destroy you where you stand."

"I'll be back," 17 snarled before taking off and flying toward the mountains.

Gohan-4 stopped beside Bulma. "You okay?" he asked, that unreadable expression still on his face. She nodded wordlessly and said, "I'm gonna go check on 17… 17-3."

"Gohan, are **_you_** okay?" Yamcha-3 asked. The teenager just looked at the scar-faced fighter for a few seconds before sitting at the table and burying his face in his hands.

"It's like it's happening all over again," he said, the words coming out muffled. "In my world, this happened. Or something damned close.

"After Cell attacked, we managed to get 18 away. Bulma reprogrammed her… not that she really needed it. She'd fallen for Krillin long ago… 17 also got away, but with King Piccolo. Things were intense for a while; getting rid of Cell, dealing with the aftermath. But once everything was calm again, he showed up at home… he threatened Okaachan, said he'd kill her if we didn't give him 18.

"We didn't, of course; she was one of us by then, and you **_don't_** betray a friend. But 17 found out that she'd been reprogrammed and he's had a personal vendetta against all of us, especially Bulma, Vegeta, and Trunks, once he was born.

"18 was killed trying to protect Goten and Okaachan from King Piccolo. Since then, 17… it's like he just snapped. He doesn't care about anything except killing us all now."

There was silence for a few minutes. They'd known that AR3 was a bad place; they just didn't know it was **_that_** bad. Gohan-4 stood up suddenly. "I'm going out for a while," he said, flying off.

Piccolo-2 suddenly looked toward the mountains. "There's something going on up there," he said. Yamcha-3 nodded. "Yeah. But… but it feels like… **_two Piccolos_**."

__

Okay, there's the update. Sorry it's so short. Anyway, I'll be writing more soon. =)


	4. 7: Piccolo vs Piccolo 8: Piccolo's Vict...

Chapter 4: Beginning Battle __

Ha! It's finally out!!!

Chapter 7: Piccolo vs. Piccolo

Piccolo-6 flew toward the forest where he and Gohan-6 had lived in their time. All the Z fighters were a little overwhelmed by everything that was going on, and it was worse for Piccolo-6 and Gohan-6, having lived alone most of their lives.

Everyone pretty much avoided seeing Gohan-7 too much. It was creepy thinking that the serious, friendly guy most of them knew, whether as a child, teenager or adult, could be so evil.

Tam had flown off somewhere. She was a little uncomfortable around all the Gokus, since in her time every incident was the same, except that she was there instead of Goku.

Piccolo halted suddenly. There was a high power level coming from the forest. It felt strangely familiar, so he flew closer to investigate.

He centered in on a small wooden shack nestled among the trees, almost hidden from view. He heard conversation coming from inside and crept closer.

"Now that we've taken care of the scrap metal we can concentrate on the others."

That was a voice that sounded vaguely familiar, although Piccolo couldn't quite place it. The reply came in a voice he **_did_** know: Android 17.

"Relax why don't you. We've got plenty of time to kill every pathetic creature on this planet. I want to have some fun first."

Piccolo moved closer until he could see in the small, dirty window.

Android 17 was sitting cross-legged on the floor, watching someone pace across the floor. The someone moved into view.

He was almost an exact copy of Piccolo, but he seemed different, different from Piccolo 1, 2 **_and_** 6, though he couldn't quite see how.

And then he realised: the difference was the utter evil emanating from the other Namek.

This must be King Piccolo… Piccolo-4, Piccolo thought. Gohan-4 had explained how, in his world, King Piccolo and Android 17 were allies. And an almost unbeatable team that had destroyed most of the Z fighters, doing what Cell couldn't.

King Piccolo's eyes suddenly shifted to the window. "17, I think we have company."

The two flew outside, where Piccolo-6 was waiting for them. The sight of another _him_, working with something so evil, filled him with disgust. King Piccolo laughed. "Well, 17, we faced **_your_** copy, now it seems it's time to face **_mine_**."

"**_You_** did that to 17?" Piccolo asked, horrified. The injuries the android had sustained were awful; he'd been in the regen tank for two days with no sign of changing.

King Piccolo grinned. "I certainly did. And I believe I killed the woman you call Chi-chi."

No, that was wrong. Chi-chi had been hurt, but after a senzu bean she was fine. Why let King Piccolo know that, though.

17 looked from one Namek to the other. He shook his head. "Whatever. I don't need to see this."

He took off. Piccolo tracked his flight with his eyes, trying to figure out where he was headed. And in that moment, King Piccolo attacked.

They used hand-to-hand mainly, since the small clearing they were in was too small for energy attacks, and neither wanted to turn his back on the other long enough to get into the sky.

King Piccolo landed a hard punch on Piccolo's jaw. Piccolo retaliated with a kick to the other Namek's gut. And then the fight was too fast to follow.

Caught up in the action, Piccolo barely had time to telepathically contact Gohan-6.

__

Gohan! Be careful, I think an evil Android 17 may be heading your way! Was all he got out before turning back to the fight with his evil counterpart.

œœœ

Gohan-6's head jerked up as he heard Piccolo-6's urgent telepathic message.

__

Gohan! Be careful, I think an evil Android 17 may be heading your way!

Evil Android 17? Actually, from what Gohan-4, Chi-chi-4 and Krillin-4 had said, that made a lot of sense. It also made a lot of what 17 had said while he was barely conscious make more sense.

The other Z fighters who were there looked at him curiously. He said, "guys, Piccolo thinks an evil 17 might be coming here. I'm not sure where he is but he sounded in a hurry so he's probably battling someone."

Trunks-3, Tien-3, Tien-2, Piccolo-2, Trunks-1 and Yamcha-3 were the only ones there. However, they were pretty confident that they could deal with Android 17, when he showed up.

And he **_did_** show up. Only it was from a direction they hadn't expected.

A scream came from inside, cut off midway through. The Z warriors ran inside and stopped short. 17… the evil 17, since he didn't look beat up… was holding Bulma-7 tightly around her waist, one arm around her neck, cutting off a lot of oxygen. He grinned at the warriors.

"So nice to see you all again. Nicer to kill you all, of course, but that can wait. For now I only want my brother."

"He's kind of indisposed right now," Gohan-6 said. "You know, on account of you almost **_killing_** him?"

"What was the point?" Trunks-3 asked. "If you were going to come back for him why try to kill him first?"

"Oh, that was King Piccolo's idea," 17 said dismissively. "I've talked him round; we both agree it makes more sense to try and make my brother rejoin us."

He looked down at Bulma. "It would be a pity if I had to kill this pretty woman," he said, "but I'm willing to, if you don't help me out here. I **_want_** my **_brother_** and **_you're_** going to tell me where he is."

"He's hurt," Tien-2 snapped. The android laughed. "Of course he is. That makes it easier to control him until we can change his programming back to what it **_should_** be, before the Briefs woman in his time meddled with him."

He pulled his arm tighter around Bulma's neck, choking her. "Now **_tell_ _me_ _where_ _he_ _is_**. Or be prepared to lose another Bulma-san."

A blast suddenly hit the android in the back, sending him sprawling across the floor. Bulma twisted out of his grip and jumped up. They all stared at Gohan-4, who was standing behind the android, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Get out of here, scum," Gohan-4 hissed angrily. "Get out of here before I destroy you where you stand."

"I'll be back," 17 snarled before taking off and flying toward the mountains.

Gohan-4 stopped beside Bulma. "You okay?" he asked, that unreadable expression still on his face. She nodded wordlessly and said, "I'm gonna go check on 17… 17-3."

"Gohan, are **_you_** okay?" Yamcha-3 asked. The teenager just looked at the scar-faced fighter for a few seconds before sitting at the table and burying his face in his hands.

"It's like it's happening all over again," he said, the words coming out muffled. "In my world, this happened. Or something damned close.

"After Cell attacked, we managed to get 18 away. Bulma reprogrammed her… not that she really needed it. She'd fallen for Krillin long ago… 17 also got away, but with King Piccolo. Things were intense for a while; getting rid of Cell, dealing with the aftermath. But once everything was calm again, he showed up at home… he threatened Okaachan, said he'd kill her if we didn't give him 18.

"We didn't, of course; she was one of us by then, and you **_don't_** betray a friend. But 17 found out that she'd been reprogrammed and he's had a personal vendetta against all of us, especially Bulma, Vegeta, and Trunks, once he was born.

"18 was killed trying to protect Goten and Okaachan from King Piccolo. Since then, 17… it's like he just snapped. He doesn't care about anything except killing us all now."

There was silence for a few minutes. They'd known that AR3 was a bad place; they just didn't know it was **_that_** bad. Gohan-4 stood up suddenly. "I'm going out for a while," he said, flying off.

Piccolo-2 suddenly looked toward the mountains. "There's something going on up there," he said. Yamcha-3 nodded. "Yeah. But… but it feels like… **_two Piccolos_**."

Chapter 8: Piccolo's Victory

The Z fighters flew toward the mountains as fast as they could… some of them, anyway. They'd figured that whoever Piccolo-6 was fighting, there was no way he was strong enough to defeat all of them.

They followed the energy signals to a small shack in the mountains. Piccolo — a Piccolo — stood over… another Piccolo. When he heard the Z fighters he looked up and grinned.

"Hey guys. You're a little late."

They landed beside him and looked down at the dead Piccolo. Gohan-6 asked, "which one is that?"

"King Piccolo," Gohan-4 replied. "I'd recognise him anywhere. He's different to you other Piccolos somehow. I can't explain it, but I can tell the people who're from my time."

"It's the same with me," a female voice said. Tam landed beside them. "Hey. Sorry if I worried anyone when I left. I wanted to be alone for a while."

She looked down at King Piccolo's dead body. "I could tell that two Piccolos were fighting, and I could tell that they weren't my Piccolos. I wasn't sure which time they were from, I just knew that they weren't from mine."

"Aren't you the clever one," a cold voice said. Suddenly, a ki blast swirled dust and rock around them. When the dust cleared, Vegeta and Goku were standing there. But which ones?

Goku laughed nastily. "You've led us on a nice adventure, Princess, but it's time to go home now," he said. Tam sighed. "Great. You again."

She turned to the Z fighters. "These two have some idea that I'm a Princess. The Princess of all the Saiyans, for that matter. It's nuts."

"Or maybe not," Gohan-6 said slowly. "Look, in every world but yours Goku came to earth when he was a baby, to destroy it. That didn't happen in your world. Maybe the Saiyans are different there, I don't know, but you, the Princess of the Saiyans, came instead. You lost your memory and you fight for good now. Just like Goku."

Vegeta-2 smirked. "Look, Princess, you may be my sister but that doesn't mean I won't fight you. Now I think you'd better come with us before Kakarott gets bored."

Tam growled, "I told you, Earth is my home now!"

Vegeta-2 and Kakarott-2 glanced at the Z fighters. They were outnumbered by at least ten people. Vegeta-2 hissed, "we'll be back, Tamerisk! You can't avoid going home forever!"

The two evil Saiyans vanished. Tam breathed a sigh of relief. "I hate to admit it but I'm glad they're gone," she said. "Those two creep me out."

The Z fighters began to fly back to Capsule Corp, where the others were waiting, about half of them had gone to see what the deal with the two Piccolos was while the others stayed with the younger versions of Trunks and Gohan, the Bulmas and Chi-chis who didn't fight and the still-unconscious Android 17.

Once they reached Capsule Corp, Trunks-1 and Vegeta-1 went to the gravity chamber to train. Most of the others went back to sleep, since it was by now about midnight. Piccolo-6 and Gohan-6 flew back to the forest, intending to spar before going back to sleep.

About an hour after they'd entered the gravity chamber, Vegeta noticed Trunks slowing down a little. It was unlike the teenager to be tired after so little time, but the night **_had_** been eventful, so Vegeta thought nothing of it.

Until his son collapsed onto the floor, writhing in pain.

Vegeta flew to his side. Trunks' back was to him, so Vegeta gently placed a hand on Trunks' shoulder and turned the teenager to face him.

He gasped. Trunks' face was moving, as if there was something under his skin. Parts of his body shimmered in and out of existence and others looked as if they were ghost limbs, transparent images mimicking the real flesh and muscle.

"What the hell is going on?" he demanded of nobody in particular. Having no ready answer, he scooped up his convulsing son and ran into the main building.

Bulma-1 was there, cleaning. She dropped her cloth when she saw Trunks. "My Kami, what's happening to him?" she asked. Vegeta shook his head. "I don't know. It just started a minute ago."

By now Trunks was screaming in agony. Bulma's eyes were filled with tears as she asked Vegeta, "what can we do?"

"I don't know. I just don't know."

œœœ

Over the next three hours, Trunks got considerably worse. And by the next morning, Krillin-1, 2 and 3, Chi-chi-1, 4, 5 and 7, Bulma-1 and 7, Piccolo-1, 2 and 3, Tien-1, 2 and 3, Yamcha-1, 2 and 3, Vegeta-1 and 3, Trunks-3 and Gohan-1 and 6 were similarly afflicted. Nobody could tell why it had happened, or even what it was.

They'd called 18 and Videl to see if they, and the girls, were okay. Strangely enough, they were fine. They weren't sure about Android 17, who was **_still_** unconscious.

Videl, Pan, Marron and 18 came to Capsule Corp as soon as they heard the news. It was almost impossible to look at the afflicted men and women, their loved ones, but they forced themselves to stay by them.

Tam paced restlessly. "This doesn't make any sense!" she cried angrily. "If it's something to do with the temporal shift, why aren't we all affected? And why are the people from this world affected too?"

Teenage-Gohan-4 put his hand on Tam's shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll figure this out," he said. Tam sighed. "I hope so," she said.

Chi-chi-2 looked up from the bench where she was studying several samples of blood they'd taken. "Tam, come here for a minute. There's something strange about these samples."

Tam peered into the microscope and gasped. The molecules of blood were separating slowly, disintegrating bit by bit. She asked, "are any other samples like this?"

Chi-chi-2 bit her lip. "All of the ones I've looked at so far," she said. Tam's eyes widened. "Their blood is… what? Breaking down? Are you saying they're coming apart from the inside?"

"That's what it looks like," Chi-chi-2 said. "I'm gonna take some of our blood, see if I can't figure out why this is only happening to some of us. The rest of you, see what you can do to make the others as comfortable as possible."

They'd moved all the affected people to Capsule Corp. Bulma-2 refused to leave Yamcha-2's side, and Pan and Videl, Marron and 18 and Bra flat-out refused to let Gohan-1, Krillin-1 and Bulma-1, Vegeta-1 and Trunks-1 out of their sight.

Tam frowned. "Chi-chi, do you really think Goku-1 and Goten are going to let you near them with a needle?" she asked, knowing by now the aversion the two Saiyans had to needles. Chi-chi-2 sighed. "If it's for Chi-chi and Gohan they probably will," she replied. "I just hope I can find out what's wrong, and how to fix it, before it's too late."

Chapter 9: Deadly Illness

Tam woke at about 4am, the way she'd done when Piccolo had trained her, back in her world. She got up and pulled a cotton robe over the pink satin pajamas Bulma-1 had lent her, and quickly went downstairs to check on everyone.

Chi-chi-2 was asleep at the bench. She'd been trying to find a cure for what was afflicting the other Z warriors and she'd been forgetting to sleep.

Tam went to check on Android 17. But when she got to the regen tank, it was empty. She frowned and checked the readouts. Apparently the tank had only been empty for half an hour. The extra clothes they'd left were gone, too, so he must have finished healing and gone… well, somewhere.

She finally found the android sitting nest to kid-Gohan's bed, stroking the little boy's hair. He looked up when Tam entered and smiled. 

"He had a nightmare," the android said softly. "I heard him crying when I came past. What else was I supposed to do?"

He sounded defensive. Tam held up her hands. "Hey, I'm not the one who was treating you like an enemy," she said. "And the others have good reason. A version of you **did** destroy their lives."

"I know. And I try not to hold it against them, but it's so hard with them all acting like I'm going to try and kill you all. Gohan-4 will never trust me, no matter what I do."

"Actually, he probably saved your life," Tam said. "While you were out, the other 17 came here. He wanted to take you with him."

"Reprogram me, probably. He thinks he's the ultimate android. Having two around would make his side much stronger."

"Well, Gohan-4 refused to let that happen. He blasted the hell out of Evil-17," Tam said. Android 17 smiled slightly. "So maybe he is beginning to trust me. It's a start. Now all I have to do is stop the Vegetas looking at me as if I'm the last pancake at a Saiyan breakfast buffet. It's kind of freaky."

"I'll bet," Tam said. "I had both teenaged Trunks and this world's Goten and Master Roshi checking me out ever since we arrived."

"What do you mean 'had'?" 17 asked. Tam swallowed and told him what was going on. When she was done, he'd turned pale and looked more freaked than she'd ever seen anyone look before.

"17? You okay?"

"Sub-temporal cellular cascade failure," the android whispered. "I know the theory of it, but it's never actually happened before…"

He barked a laugh. "Of course it's never happened. **This** has never happened before."

"What is it?" Tam asked. 17 glanced at the sleeping Gohan-3. "Not here," he said.

They went down to the lab where Chi-chi-2 had been doing her blood work. 17 sat down and pulled in a deep, shuddering breath. "Sub-temporal cellular cascade failure theoretically occurs when there's more than one of the same person in the one time. It affects those closest in age and personality, which would explain why only some of the others are affected."

"What does it do?" Chi-chi-2 asked. 17 glanced at her and replied, "it breaks down entities on a sub-cellular level. Like your blood samples showed, they're literally breaking apart from the inside. And if it goes on for too long, they die."

"D-do you know of a cure?" Tam asked, shaken. The android turned haunted eyes to her, a despairing expression on his face. "That's just it, Tam. Apart from getting us all back to our own time, there is no cure."

"Then we'll get everyone back to the proper time," Chi-chi-2 said. Tam shook her head. "I'd love to, Chi-chi, but we have no idea how we got here. So we have no idea how to get back. And that means, unless we figure something out, and soon, everyone affected with this is going to die."

**__**

Letter to anyone who bothers reading past the story: Sorry. Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry. My Internet connection has been totally crap the past two weeks and I've had like ten minutes every six days.

So I've written a nice long three-chapter bit for anyone who actually reads my stuff. If anyone does, please review? All you gotta say is 'I like it' or 'it sucks' or 'you should be sent to a mental hospital, you crazy nutcase'. Whatever you want, really. But no reviews makes me feel like nobody would really care if I took this off.

See, I've had five, maybe six reviews. Those who did review, thanks, and sorry I can't write you here because as I write this I'm not on the Net.

Anyway, r + r please. It makes me feel better. I always review stories I read, even the ones I don't like or the ones that disturb me. I think it's common courtesy to let an author know what you think or their work.

Anyway, that's my rant for the week. I'll try to get this stuff out faster.

****

—-Ares


	5. 10: Clarification

Chapter 4: Beginning Battle

Chapter 10: Clarification

It had been five days since most of the Z fighters had been afflicted with sub-temporal cellular cascade failure. Tam walked through an eerily quiet Capsule Corp to the lab where Chi-chi-2 was trying to find a cure for the deadly condition.

She walked into the kitchen and found Android 17, sitting at the table. He looked up at her and sighed. "We both know that Chi-chi is wasting her time," he said softly. "The only way to heal the others is to get them back to their times."

"But how can we send everyone back? I mean, think about the worlds some of them came from," Tam said. "Death, slavery, evil everywhere. Can we really ask them to go back to a place like that?"

"Is the alternative any better? Staying here and dying? Either way there's death, Tam, but at least if they go back they have a chance to survive. You can fight Saiyans, Nameks, you can even fight androids who think they're the strongest creation in the world. What you can't fight is time."

"Think about the kids. Especially Trunks-4. You'd send him back to a world where his family is dead?" Tam asked. 17 replied, "he has family, Tam. Chi-chi-4, Gohan-4, Krillin-4… they're his family there. And they're all that stood between Earth and total destruction. You'd leave that world without protectors, just because it didn't feel quite right?"

Tam sighed and said softly, "I know you're right, it just seems so wrong. And we don't even know how to send us all back!"

"Well, think about what happened before we were brought here. In my world, Piccolo had just attacked. He was just floating there in the sky. From what Gohan-4 told us, King Piccolo and evil-17 had just found them."

"Kakarott, Vegeta and I were fighting," Tam said. 17 frowned. "There's only one link I can see; evil counterparts showed up. But according to Chi-chi-5, she and Gohan were alone at their house when they were dragged here. What's the connection?"

"Well, just before we were dragged here, three of our blasts connected," Tam said slowly. "As soon as they intersected, we all saw a bright silver flash and stars. The others said they could see memories that had never happened, but I didn't see that."

Her eyes widened suddenly. "It must be because I don't have a counterpart in any other world. If what Vegeta… the Vegeta in my world… says is true, I'm the Saiyan princess. There is no Saiyan princess in any of the other worlds."

"You think that means something? It could just be a coincidence," 17 said. "After all, there are only two of me here." 

Tam shook her head. "But versions of you existed in the alternate worlds. Those that were up to this time, anyway. Some were several years behind, like Chi-chi-5's world, and Alternate Reality-6 was a few years ahead. But in all the worlds, there was a version of Goku, a version of Vegeta, everyone there is in this world. I'm the only anomaly."

"But what does that have to do with anything?" 17 asked. Tam replied, "this all began because of a fight between me, Vegeta and Kakarott. Three of the most powerful fighters in my universe. It must have been the intersection of our ki blasts that caused this. And that means…"

"Only a recreation of that event can send us all back to where we belong," 17 finished. Tam nodded weakly. "Yes. It's the only way we'll get back. But I can't exactly ask Kakarott and Vegeta to have a mock battle with me."

"What about Gohan-4, this world's Goku and you? That should create a blast close enough to send us all back," 17 suggested. Tam nodded slowly. "Yes. I guess we have to do this. We can't just let them all die."

œœ œ

Tam, Gohan-4 and Goku-1 hovered in mid-air, powering up.

"You're sure about this?" Goku-1 asked. Tam nodded. "It's the only thing we have to go on right now," she said. "We have to try it."

"All right. I'm ready when you are."

They each sent a blast spiraling toward the earth. As those who were still able watched, holding their breath, the three blasts intersected.

There was a bright silver flash. And this time, Tam saw what everyone else saw.

A seven-way split, each section showing a different alternate reality. Some different to others, but all had one thing in common: the Z fighters who were there were smiling.

****

Epilogue

Timeline: AR-1, 'Paix' world.

Tam opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was Kame House. The second was Vegeta and Kakarott, out cold on the beach, sprawled among the others. She did a quick head count. They were all there, unconscious but alive.

She walked over to Vegeta and Kakarott, considering. _These guys are okay in most of the alternate worlds,_ she mused. She powered up and fired small amounts of ki into their brains, eliminating the memory centers.

__

I hate to do this, but it's for the best. At least now I won't have to kill guys who could turn out okay.

As the two Saiyans woke up, identical expressions of confusion passed over their faces. Kakarott spoke first.

"Where are we?"

"You're on the planet Earth. Your names are Vegeta and Ka… Goku. Don't worry, I'll explain everything."

****

Timeline: AR-2, 'Mi-Chemin World'- 1 year after return

Goku smiled as Gohan played in the waves with Sea Turtle. Vegeta spoke from beside him.

"He's going to grow up into a strong warrior. Just like his father."

Goku turned and looked at the other Saiyan. Vegeta had never lost that sadness he'd gained at Bulma's death, but he seemed… more at peace. Vegeta smiled and answered Goku's unasked question.

"Seeing her again hurt, but seeing her happy, with another version of me… it helps to know that somewhere there's a world where we're still together. Still happy."

Goku nodded. "I know you miss her. And I know you can never admit that to anyone else. Just remember… if you ever need to talk, or take it out on me, I'm here."

"I know, Goku. I know."

****

Timeline: AR-3, 'Mauvais World'- 3 months after returning.

Gohan pulled the last Dragonball out of his pocket and placed it with the others. Then he stood back and said, "Great Dragon, I summon you by name: Shenlong!"

The huge green dragon appeared and rumbled, "you have one wish."

"I wish that everyone killed by Android 17 and King Piccolo, whether directly or indirectly, was alive again," Gohan said. The dragon nodded.

"It is done."

Then the dragon vanished, but Gohan barely noticed. He was too busy staring at the man who had appeared, along with several others. The tall, spiky-haired man with a look of pride on his face.

"You did well, son. I'm proud of you."

A few meters away, Bulma and Vegeta embraced their young son. Tien, Yamcha, Chiaotzu, Goten, Chi-chi… they were all back.

Gohan hugged his father, a smile breaking across his face.

"Everything's the way it should be."

****

Timeline: AR-4, the world where Nameks are evil

Chi-chi tucked baby Gohan into bed and turned to her husband. He smiled at her and hugged her.

"Chi-chi, I was so worried when you two disappeared. I thought I'd lost you."

"You'll never lose me, you big goon. I've seen what happened in other worlds. We still have to have another son."

"Another son huh? Well, we may as well start working on that right away."

****

Timeline: AR-5, the world where Gohan grew up in the forest with Piccolo

The Namek and the Saiyan flew toward the city. Gohan glanced at Piccolo. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"You can't stay in the forest your whole life. We should catch up with the others. It's been too long."

Gohan nodded and they continued flying.

When they reached the city, the first person they saw was a dark-haired man with scars on his face. Gohan yelled, "Yamcha!"

Yamcha looked up and broke into a smile. "Gohan! Where've you been all these years?"

"It's a long story, my friend. Where are the others? I'd prefer to tell you all at once."

"Not a problem. They'll be glad to see you two again."

****

Timeline: AR-6, the world where Saiyans took over.

Trunks, Vegeta, Bulma and Chi-chi looked down at the Dragonballs, collected by the resistance against the Saiyans. The four looked at the faces that were at once familiar and strangers.

Yamcha. Chiaotzu. Piccolo. Krillin. Even Kami was there.

"So how do we do this?" Yamcha asked. "We can't wish that the Saiyans never came or Trunks wouldn't exist."

"Wish that this timeline mirrored the world we just came from," Trunks said suddenly. Vegeta nodded. "Yes. It makes sense."

Piccolo summoned the dragon and told mighty Shenlong their wish. He nodded and vanished.

And everything changed. Standing around the now-dull Dragonballs was the whole group of Z fighters. And none of them could remember what they'd wished for.

"Why are we looking at the Dragonballs if they aren't active?" Goku wondered. Gohan shrugged. "We must have made a wish. I guess it doesn't really matter."

The end!!!!

Well, that does it for 'A Matter Of Time'. I may branch off this fic, but only when I'm done other stuff.

As of now, I still need to finish 'Child Of Prophecy', the sequel to 'Alphas' (an original fic I wrote), 'Hidden Emotion' and gods knows what else. I'm taking 'Daughter Of The Stars' off for now, since I haven't got as much time to work on it as I want to and it isn't turning out the way I'd expected.

Anyway. Reviews are nice. They let me know if my endings are total crap.


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